Tag structure



Nov. 13, 19 34. w. BORCHERT ET Al.

TAG STRUCTURE Filed June 20, 1931 Patented Nov. 13, 1934 UNITED STATES TAG STRUCTURE William Borchert and Fred L. Borchert, Rockford,

Ill., assignors to The Tagit Company, Rockford, 111., a. corporation of Illinois Application June 20, 1931, Serial No. 545,823

14 Claims,

This invention relates to tags and has special reference to an article of manufacture in the form of a strip adapted to be severed at intervals for the purpose of producing individual tags and v sort of box or other container.

toga package for transporting and using the same.

Heretofore, it has been customary to provide tags, such as laundry tags, in the form of individual tags which were loosely packed in some In the manuiacture, packing, and use of these tags, it was necessary to give individual attention to each tag. Thus, the tags had to be counted by hand and applied by a hand operation, since, to the best of our knowledge, automatic mechanism for this purpose has not been available. Furthermore, the structure and shape characteristics of the tags of the prior art were such that automatic means could not be found for satisfactorily packaging, coLmting, and applying them. Proper feeding and afl'ixing of the conventional tag, even when produced in strip form becomes highly clifiicult because of the bending of the staple points by the feeding operations when these are employed as abutments. As a result of the points becoming bent the staples tend to drive crooked and do not properly'secure the tags to the material. Another factor which makes these tags diihcult to apply is the wide spacing between the prongs. This spacing requires that the prongs be quite long in order that the ends thereof will overlap when applied to firmly clinch the tag to the material. Because of the length these prongs tend to curl and distort badly when being driven into the material to which the tags are applied and render aifixing mechanism erratic.

We have aimed to provide tags in the form of a continuous strip adapted to be applied through the use of automatic mechanism.

Another object of the invention is the proviw sion of tags in strip form adapted to be held and guided at the edges thereof and having-means on the outer face thereof to be engaged by feed ing mechanism.

We have also aimed to provide tags in strip form wherein the prongs ofthe staples pass through the tag at points spaced from the side edges thereof.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of tags in strip form wherein the prongs lie in parallel spaced relation to the strip to facilitate the packing thereof.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved container adapted to serve in manufacturing, transporting and feeding the tags in strip form.

Other objects and attendant advantages will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description and the accompanying drawing in Which- Figure 1 is a vertical perspective showing of the tag strip and tag package; i

Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the tag package showing a portion of a tag strip in roll form; I

Fig. 3 is a vertical section through the tag strip and tag guides; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view of the tag strip positioned in the guides showing the manner in which the strip is fed'through the guides.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral 6 designates'a strip of material suitable for use in tags, in this instance consisting of cloth fabric having an upper layer land lower layers 8 and 9 over lapped, as shown at 11, to provide substantially parallel side edges 12 and 13. Pairs ofstaples l4 and 15 are positioned in the strip 6 at spaced intervals along the strip, the distance'betweenthe pairs being substantially the desired length of the tag. The staples of each pair are spaced, as shown at 16, to permit the severance of the'strip between the two staples to produce tags having staples at opposite ends. I

Each of the staples consists of a fiat top portion 17 positioned upon the top of the strip and secured thereto by means of a pair of fingers 1 8 and 19 integral with opposite sides of the portion 17 and passing through the strip 6. The lower end of the fingers are bent over to clamp the staple to the strip and to secure the various layers of the strip together. The prongs of the staple are integral with the portion 17 and pro ject at right angles thereto through the strip nearopposite edges thereof at points spaced from the edges. The points 23 and 24 of the prongs are bent at about right angles to the portions 21 and 22 to lie substantially parallel with the lower surface of the strip 6 and in spaced relation thereto, as shown in Fig. 3. When the tags are applied the staple points 23 and Marc moved from the position shown in Fig. 3 to a coplanar position beneath the central partof the ta'gso as to clamp the fabric of the material to which they are applied between the tag strip and the points in the area between the portions 2land 22 of the staples.

The tag structure described provides continuous edge portions 25 and 26 on the strip 6 which may be received in the grooves 27 and 28 of guide bars 29 and 31 of a suitable feeding mechanism, the space between the edges 25 and 26 and the points 23 and 24, respectively, being such as to permit the edges 25 and 26 of the strip to be received in the grooves 27 and 28 and to move longitudinally therein without interference from the staples. The head portion 17 of the staples, resting on the upper side of the table, serve as abutments to be'engaged by a pawl 32 of suitable feeding mechanism, movement of the pawl acting to feed the strip through the guide bars 29 and 31. The continuous free edges of the strip thus provide uninterrupted portions running the full length of the strip whichare employed as portions for guiding the strip into the afiixing mechanism and for holding the strip whilebeing fed by the pawl. By this means the strip may be held against edgewise movement so that it will be fed straight, and against sidewise movement resulting from the contact of the feeding pawl.

mechanism. By this means the individual handling of each tag and the affixing of the tags through hand operations may be eliminated. Furthermore, because of the particular shape of the staples the tags may be packed much more advantageously and protected during storage and shipment, by rolling the strip in a roll such as shown in Fig. 2, or in other packing form.

We have shown in Figs. 1 and 2, a tag package consisting of rectangular side pieces 33 and 34 of cardboard or the like secured at their centers to a hub 35 of wood or other suitable material by means of tacks 36 or 37 or other devices. A sleeve 38 is positioned upon the hub 35 for free rotation thereon, the sleeve being slightly larger than the hub so that a wedge 39 may be inserted betweenthe hub and the sleeve to prevent the sleeve from rotating with respect to the hub. A circular opening 41 is provided in the side 34 tojpermit the insertion and removal of the wedge 39 as desired and also to permit access to the outer surface of the sleeve 38, as will presently be described. An opening 42 is axially positioned in the hub 35 and in the sides 33 and 34 for the The end of the strip 6 is then secured to the sleeve 38 by means of gum tape or otherwise. The strip 6 is then wound on the package, as shown in Fig. 2, directly from the tag manufacturing machinery. In some instances we have found it advisable to wind the tag strip upon the package before the side 33 is secured to the hub in order to insure that the points 23 and 24 of the staples will not be in any way damaged or bent by the winding operation but with suitable mechanism the winding may be accomplished without this precaution. When the desired amount of tag strip 6 has been wound upon the package the strip is severed and the end secured as for example by the use of gummed tape. If not already in place, the side 33 is then secured to the hub 35, and the wedge 39 is removed. In this condition the tags are ready for shipment. It will be seen that by packaging the tags in this manner a large number of tags may be shipped in relatively limited space. The sides 33 and 34 serve to protect the staple points 23 and 24 against bending thereby assuring the satisfactory operation of the tag when afiixed by the user through the use of the tag affixing mechanism. The package further protects the strip from being soiled during shipment and storage.

The tag package is further arranged to function in tag aifixing mechanism because of the shape of the sides 33 and 34 and the rotatable sleeve 38. The tag afiixing mechanism may be provided with a package receiving member into which the packages may be positioned so that the rectangular sides 33 and 34 serve to support the tag. package therein by contact of the rectangular sides with the container. The sleeve 38 being free to rotate on the hub 35, the end of the tag strip 6 may be loosened and positioned in the tag affixing mechanism whereupon the sleeve 38 will rotate in response to the movement of the pawl 32 to feed the tags from the stationary package.

Thus, the tag package serves as the tag -receiving receptacle of the tag manufacturing mechanism, serves as a transportation container, and serves in the dispensing of the tags in the tag afiixing mechanism, all of which results from the particular manner in which the package is formed and fro-m the shape characteristics of the various portions thereof. However, the essential functions of the package are two-fold. It serves as a container for the tags during the manufacture, the transportation and the use of the tags, and it serves as a medium for the protection of the shape characteristics of the tag staples. In automatically afiixed tags the latter is a matter of serious consideration. When the tags are to be afiixed by tag afiixing mechanism it is essential that the tags be relatively accurate duplicates of each other in order to insure uniform results from the affixing mechanism. For this reason if the staple points are bent out of shape-a thing which may occur very easily-the operation of, the tag aflixing mechanism is apt to be inaccurate so'that the tag will be improperly afiixed tothe material to which it is to be applied, or possibly, will not be affixed at all. For this reason, itis of paramount importance to protect the tags, not only during their manufacture and their use, but during their transportation, since only slight forces applied to the outer ends of the points 23 and 24 will serve to so distort the tag as to render the action of the aflixing mechanism erratic.

By making the head of the staple of lesser length than the width of the strip, and passing the prongs through the strip at points spaced from the edges thereof we have provided a tag strip having many novel advantages. A tag strip is provided having continuous free edges which may be employed in guiding the strip, the upwardly projecting staple head is providedfor feeding the strip, and the staple points are relatively short and stiff whereby they resist distortion during storage, shipment, and affixing.

While we have thus described and illustrated a specific embodiment of our invention we are aware that numerous alterations and changes 7 may be made therein without materially departing from the spirit of the invention and L nally spaced relation, the prongs thereof being bent to provide portions extending laterally in spaced relation to the adjacent side of said strip.

2. An article of manufacture comprising strip material having continuous free edges adapted to be received in the guides of an aflixing mechanism, and a plurality of spaced staples each having a head portion on one side of said strip intermediate said edges, and prongs on the opposite side of said strip extending outward in substantially parallel relation to and spaced from the opposite side of the strip.

3. An article of manufacture comprising strip material having continuous free edges adapted to be received in the guides of an affixing mechanism, and a plurality of spaced staples each having a head portion positioned crosswise of said strip on one side thereof intermediate said edges and laterally extending prongs on the opposite side of said strip positioned in a plane spaced from and parallel to said opposite side of the strip.

4. An article of manufacture comprising strip material having continuous free edges adapted to be received in the guides of an aflixing mechanism, and a plurality of spaced staples passing through said strip each having a head portion on one side of said strip intermediate said edges, and prongs on the opposite side of said strips bent to provide portions extending outwardly in substantially parallel relation to and spaced from the opposite side of the strip.

5. An article of manufacture comprising a strip of tag material, and a plurality of spaced staples each having a head portion and prongs, said head portion being secured to one side of said strip and said prongs passing therethrough at points spaced from the edges of said strip and extending laterally outward in spaced relation to the adjacent side of said strip to leave said edges free for reception in guiding and supporting parts of tag affixing mechanism.

6. An article of manufacture comprising strip material having continuous free edges adapted to be received in the guides of an aflixing mechanism, and afiixing prongs secured to said strip at points spaced from the edges thereof and projecting laterally outward in parallelly disposed spaced relation to the adjacent side of said strip.

7. A strip of tag material adapted to be severed at intervals to provide separate tags, said strip having continuous free edges for reception in the guides of an affixing mechanism, and a plurality of spaced staples each having a head portion secured to one side of said strip projecting thereabove to serve as an abutment for feeding means, and prongs passing through said strip at points spaced from the edge of said strip, said prongs extending laterally outward in a parallelly disposed plane spaced from the adjacent side of the strip.

8. An article of manufacture comprising a continuous strip of fabric adapted to be severed at intervals to form a plurality of laundry tags, metal staples in said strip spaced to rest near opposite ends of said tags, the prongs of each of said staples passing through said strip at points spaced from the edges of said strip and lying in spaced substantially parallel relation to the adjacent side of said strip whereby guiding and supporting means may be interposed therebetween.

9. An article of manufacture comprising strip material adapted to be severed at intervals to form a plurality of tags, staples positioned in said strip in spaced relation to rest near opposite ends of said tags, the prongs of each of said staples passing through said strip at points spaced from the side edge of said strip to provide a head portion on one side of said strip and prongs ends on the opposite side thereof, said ends lying substantially parallel to said strip and in outwardly projecting spaced relation thereto.

10. A tag construction, comprising strip material having free uninterrupted edges for reception in the guides of tag aflixing mechanism, and a plurality of spaced prongs afiixed to the central portion of said strip bent to extend laterally outward in a plane parallel to and spaced from said strip and to provide a space between said prongs and the free edges for the reception of a portion of said guides to prevent twisting of the tag strip in the affixing mechanism.

11. A tag construction comprising, strip material having free uninterrupted edges for reception in the guides of afiixing mechanism, spaced prongs on the central portion of said strip extending therethrough, and bent through substantially a right angle at a point spaced from said strip to extend laterally outward in a plane parallel to said strip for the reception of a portion of said guides to prevent twisting of the tag strip.

12. A tag construction comprising strip material, adapted to be wound in a roll, longitudinally spaced prongs secured to said strip and spaced laterally inward from the edge of the strip to provide free marginal portions, said prongs being bent intermediate their ends to provide a portion angularly disposed with respect to said strip and a parallelly disposed portion spaced from said marginal portions, leaving said marginal portions free for guiding said strip and said prongs parallel thereto for convenient rolling and for bending to a position for clinching.

13. A tag construction comprising strip material, longitudinally spaced prongs on said strip spaced laterally inward from the edges thereof to provide free marginal portions for reception in a guide of afiixing mechanism, said prongs being bent first angularly and then parallelly and spaced with respect tosaid strip to enclose a portion of said guide between the marginal portions and the prongs for holding and guiding said strip and being adapted to be bent straight for driving.

14. In a laundry tag having a strip of tag material, a staple having a head portion of substantially lesser length. than the width of said strip secured transversely on the longitudinal center of the strip, an outwardly extending prong at each end of said head portion formed to lie in part in a plane spaced from and parallel to the side of the strip adjacent thereto, and transverse portions connecting one end of each of said prongs to one end of said head portion.

WILLIAM BORCI-IERT. FRED L. BORCHERT. 

